President Donald Trump gestures during a reception for Republican members of Congress in the East Room of the White House, Tuesday, July 22, 2025, in Washington (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson).
The U.S. Department of Justice on Thursday sued California after the state declined to review a list of people the Trump administration believes “are likely noncitizens who were sent a vote-by-mail ballot.”
In a 15-page complaint, the DOJ accuses the Golden State and top election officials of violating the supremacy clause of the U.S. Constitution by “knowingly” sending such ballots “to likely noncitizens and ultimately counting those ballots” in violation of federal law.
“Based on a thorough analysis of voter rolls and federal data, agencies within the Department of Homeland Security found thousands of likely noncitizens registered to vote in California who would automatically be sent federal ballots under State law,” the filing reads.
Love true crime? Sign up for our newsletter, The Law&Crime Docket, to get the latest real-life crime stories delivered right to your inbox.
The lawsuit accuses California of “knowingly” facilitating “unlawful voting” by sending voting materials to registered voters that “do not bifurcate between state, local, and federal elections.”
Many of those registered voters are likely noncitizens, according to the DOJ.
“The State knows that noncitizens might be registered to vote, and it knows the names of such individuals,” the lawsuit goes on. “But it still intends to count their vote without verifying the voter’s citizenship.”
To hear the government tell it, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) first developed a list of potential noncitizens registered to vote in California and worked with Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) to generate a final list of “around 20,000 noncitizens…registered to vote.”
“This means that, consistent with state law, nearly 20,000 noncitizens in California have been sent a vote-by-mail ballot to participate in the federal election (or will receive one), with many addresses listed in Los Angeles County,” the lawsuit continues.
Earlier this week, the Trump administration submitted its findings to state officials and “reiterated this serious concern with exacting details,” according to the lawsuit. The DOJ also made demands.
From the filing at length:
The Federal Government asked California to review the list and, in partnership with federal agencies, to determine whether citizens were listed. If California was unable to independently confirm the citizenship of people on that list, the Federal Government asked that California set aside ballots received from them until the person’s citizenship was confirmed. Given the time sensitivity of the impending election, the Federal Government asked California to conduct its review by today at noon.
But California was not interested.
Instead, an election official in Los Angeles issued a press release explaining they “rejected an encrypted thumb drive from a federal agent that identified likely noncitizen voters,” the lawsuit recounts.
This action demonstrates “a total lack of commitment” to work “to protect the integrity of our elections,” the government says.
The lawsuit claims California is “preempted” from “sending vote-by-mail ballots and tabulating them without verifying citizenship” with federal officials “after being told of likely noncitizen voters.”
The filing requests injunctive relief.
“The United States thus seeks commonplace election relief when a ballot is called into question. This Court should enjoin California from presently tabulating vote-by-mail ballots from likely noncitizens in the upcoming federal election until the voter’s citizenship status can be determined.”
The lawsuit elaborates on a preferred court order:
To do so, this Court should order California (1) to set aside vote-by-mail ballots from persons identified by the Federal Government likely to be noncitizens and (2) to independently—or in collaboration with the Federal Government—verify their citizenship status (beyond relying on unverified statements of citizenship necessary to registering) before tabulating their vote-by-mail ballot. The United States seeks this relief to prevent unlawful dilution of American citizens’ votes and to protect the integrity of our elections.
In response, California Gov. Gavin Newsom called the lawsuit “a sad, desperate attempt” by Trump to suppress votes.
The post DOJ accuses California of ‘knowingly’ facilitating ‘unlawful voting’ after state declines to review list of 20,000 noncitizens allegedly sent vote-by-mail ballots first appeared on Law & Crime.
